problems

hi all!
Indie, who is now 14wks old. seems to be getting either vicous or over excited.
When she wants attention, she bites, growls and barks and stuff. And also, if you tell her off for anything she retaliates. You cant ever tap her on the nose cos she bites. Not that i approve of that kind of discipline!

Also, sometimes when i go to fetch her from the garden, she growls and barks at me, and if i go to pick her up, she bites me. It hurts now,i dread to think how much it will hurt when shes older.

Also, shes got funny with our other dog (a 1 yr old yorkshire terrier), they play together all the time, but sometimes, she gets (over excited??) and starts growling really badly and barking at him and scares him so much he goes for her.

Is she being vicious or just over excited?
Im really worried, cos she ends up biting us alot! We have tried ignoring her, leaving the room, playing with her, telling her off... and she does it again later on.

any advice would be much appreciated!!!

Jenny & indie

Hi - what breed is she? What training is she getting? Is she going to puppy class? She sounds like she is finding her feet to me - do you teach her bite inhibition?

sorry, shes a staffordshire bull terrier. She has not been to puppy classes, but i have taught her everything they teach anyway. She sits, lies down, stays, comes etc etc.
I have treied teaching her bite inhibition. I have tried yelping out loud when she bites, but she gets more excited and bites more and harder! I have tried ignoring, but she still does it the next day.

Biting is defiantely not acceptable, however before anything else get her checked over by a vet first incase somethings up.
Maybe somebody else has something to add?

At 14 weeks she is going to try it on and get herself very worked up. When she bits you needs to yelp and withdraw from her...turn your back and ignore her. Try and stick to this method without alternating too.

It sounds like normal behaviour to me though - Willis was a nightmare for biting, but with this method we can have a really good playfight now with teeth and everything and he knows when to stop

They will try it on Jen and thats why its important not to let her off with certain behaviour just because shes cute and a pup

Ive found out theyre not called bitches for nothing

My mother's puppy does that too. She's very spoiled lol. I would immediately tell the puppy NO in a firm and serious voice and then put something appropriate in her mouth like a toy. Sounds like the lack of consistency is playing a role in the problem. Good luck

It is normal behaviour for a pup of 14 weeks, and the best way is to stop the contact/game and walk away. Shouting and waving of hands to try and tap her nose is very exciting and will make matters worse. There is a time when a yelp will stop a pup but IMO that inhibition behaviour stops about 12 to 14 weeks when the pup’s self-will takes over. If she wont play and interact in a manner you find acceptable then remove either yourself or the pup, so the pup learns that its behaviour will stop all play and contact dead. Do let the dogs play but if it gets to much then do the same remove either the pup or the other dog.

To clarify, my advice was for puppy biting humans. I personally don't think that should be ignored, but would be interested in hearing contradicting views...